In-house or out-source?

Why hire in? Why hire out? And why I prefer the out-source way.

I have been ‘designing graphics’ now for the past eight-or-so years, and professionally since 2005. I’ve worked in a variety of circumstances from in-house at a startup leading the creative team, to freelancing and heading up a handful of projects for a handful of clients at one time. Each method has its strengths and weaknesses and it would be foolish to say that one is better than the other for a company or a creative team. It comes down to preference and ultimately, the needs of everyone involved.

Companies all over the world hire a workforce of designers, copywriters and other creatives to make an in-house marketing or creative department. By hiring and then having the creatives on hand, the company can quickly and easily get things done in the realm of brand management, new product creation, visual communication and so on. This resource, however, may come at a cost if the company in question doesn’t have a constant need. Keeping these creatives on payroll with twiddling thumbs half the time can really eat up what could otherwise be a healthy bonus for everyone else. Still, if this company has a qualified and efficient marketing or creative director, he or she can keep his or her army of right-brained warriors in the trenches of creation rather than in the barracks of blogs, Facebook and font identification games (I’ve been there. It’s ridden with guilt.).

Another thing to consider with the in-house model is how limber the creative army is. My experience with working on an endless que of projects with the same big idea, the same brand, the same color scheme and one overall message to communicate is that my creative mind develops a little ‘flab’, if you will. Sometimes it can get plain boring. Not to say that there isn’t value in a team that does one thing really well.

Many companies either have a little less need or a little more gusto and insist on hiring firms and freelancers from the outside to provide a gamut of design needs. The really successful companies generally have a person on the inside (someone with experience in the creative side of business) to keep this exchange of creative product buzzing nicely. At any rate, the product that buzzes into play for these companies is often the award-winning, conversion-earning, president-and-CEO-pleasing stuff. It’s no secret that hiring out can often give a company and brand the punch it craves.

Many people fear this type of relationship, especially noting that in-housers take home a lower hourly rate than the firm or freelancer does. One thing that many decision makers fail to realize is that being an outside contractor is competitive and we (I happen to be one of these freelancers) often have incentives to make our workflows efficient, our rates reasonable and in the end, our clients happy. And while some projects may fetch a hefty price tag out-of-house, my experience is that most can save a company some money and a long-term commitment.

One of the reasons I love to do freelance is because it keeps the quiver sharp. While designing a website for a homebuilder, I may be crafting a logo for a pharmaceutical and designing a poster for a band and building a package for a sporting goods manufacturer. Almost any designer will tell you that the best way to keep things fresh is to step away from a project for a time. Stepping in and out of projects proves to keep me feeling like my work is objective and versatile—in the end fitting the client just right.

It may be tough for any company to make a choice between in-house and out-sourced design. Companies who value their brand and want to ensure that their collateral says the right things first seek a little consulting. Talk to other businesses in your market/industry about their designers. When hiring a designer or firm, be sure to request a design audit and strategy. Listen closely and hire a candidate that understands your needs and can deliver a product that has something more than just “hey, that looks neato!”